Gas Station In Worcester Flood Plain Gets Key Approval

Worcester MA

07 June, 2022

11:21 AM

Description

WORCESTER, MA — The Worcester Conservation Commission Monday gave a final approval to allow a gas station to be built in a flood plain near Crompton Park. The commission in April denied an approval for the project at 75 Quinsigamond Ave. over concerns that gas and other contaminates could enter the stormwater system and natural waterways during a flood. The gas station would sit above Mill Brook, which feeds the Blackstone River where it meets with the Middle River near the Route 149 and I-290 split. Quinsigamond Avenue often floods during heavy rain. The developer, Neon Marketplace Operating I LLC, on Monday presented a new plan for the gas station that includes an upgraded retention system. The new system would hold runoff from the gas station, and could be closed off from the city stormwater system manually, project engineers told commission members. According to plans, the Neon Marketplace gas station would include eight gas and diesel pumps, an array of electric car chargers and a nearly 6,000 square-foot convenience store. Neon Marketplace is a Rhode Island-based chain with three locations in that state, and one in Seekonk. The gas station would occupy a triangular piece of land that was previously the home of a Nissen bakery. The Neon Marketplace would be the fourth gas station in the Green Island area, with two along nearby Southbridge Street and one under construction at Kelley Square. The Worcester Planning Board and the Zoning Board of Appeals have both already approved the Neon Marketplace project. Conservation Commission Chair Joseph Charpentier was the sole no vote on the project on Monday.